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Foreign Policy

Can the United States and China continue to build mutual trust through increased military exchanges? According to Wu Zurong, recent developments have boosted military-to-military relations between the two countries, but more must be done to reaffirm US claims that it has no intention of containing China.

Japan and the United States are competing for a dominant role in the Asia-Pacific, as the negotiations over the TPP ad the new Japan-US defense guidelines inflame tensions in the bilateral relationship, writes Liu Junhong.

As heads of state from across Africa convene in Washington, D.C. this week for the 2014 U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, Robert Rotberg discusses the uphill battle the United States has to gain influence on a continent where China has a dominant foothold.

How can the Obama administration improve U.S.-China relations while applying greater pressure on North Korea? As Doug Bandow explains, this will be a difficult endeavor and require compromises from both nations.

Prime Minister Abe’s reinterpretation of the Peace Constitution is partially the result of US pressure for Japan to contribute more to the alliance. Although, a more nuanced explanation is Abe’s realization that the United States would likely not risk war with China over territorial disputes and so he has taken the first step towards an independent defense posture for Japan.

China’s strengthening cooperation with Latin American countries will benefit regional economic prosperity and development, and is also in the interest of the US, according to Dong Chunling and Sun Changhao.

President Xi Jinping’s recent trip to Latin America underscored four aspects of China’s outreach efforts to Latin America. To expand South-South cooperation, to promote multi-polarity, to hedge against risks and challenges to future development by enhancing BRICS and Latin American cooperation, and to improve the provision of international public goods.

As the United States takes action, diplomatically and militarily, in the Asian region, the US has been seen as attempting to contain China. Justin Logan assesses this claim, and introduces the idea that the United States is indeed acting to contain China not so much economically, but militarily.

President Xi Jingping’s recent visit to South Korea was a rebuff to North Korea’s defiance of China’s warnings not to conduct nuclear or missile tests. If the United States incentivizes the Chinese government to incur the risks of abandoning the North Korean regime, Beijing might be willing to dump Pyongyang and treat Seoul as its future partner on the Peninsula.

Relations between China and South Korea continue to improve. Their two governments have developed a strong economic partnership and managed their security differences over North Korea and other issues well. Surveys of South Korean public opinion show a remarkable rise in popular assessments of China and its policies. Nevertheless, South Korea remains a reliable U.S. ally and security partner and Beijing’s options regarding Seoul are seriously constrained as long as China remains committed to sustaining North Korea as a buffer state.

Chinese President Xi Jinping recently made a trip to South Korea to further three objectives, according to Mel Gurtov. Given these three objectives, Gurtov analyzes and discusses their implications. More broadly, he also analyzes the implications of President Xi Jinping’s trip in general.

While it is rumored that Chinese President Xi Jinping requested the BRICS Summit in Brazil be held in July so he could attend the World Cup, Fernando Menéndez argues that China’s president should have more on his mind than a football game and highlights the significance of the upcoming BRICS Summit.